Are You Suffering from Stale Content Syndrome? Learn How to Revive Your Website's Content
Nobody wants to read stale content that fails to engage or inform. In a digital era where attention spans are shorter than ever, outdated or uninspired material can quickly turn away potential customers. Fresh, dynamic content is crucial to capturing interest and maintaining relevance in a crowded online marketplace. Let's explore why updating and revitalizing your content strategy is essential for keeping your audience hooked and coming back for more.
We may not be medical professionals (thank goodness). Still, with our expertise in content marketing and many years of web design/development, the diagnosis of SCS sounds as bad as it looks. With so many of us working from home and relying on digital mediums to connect our services, business, and products to consumers, ensuring your content stands out above the rest is often overwhelming, even for the most established brands in the biz. No matter how hard you try, eventually, everyone reaches a point where their content is staler than a rogue french fry stuck between your car's console and driver seat.
The "symptoms" of SCS can include:
Luckily there are a few simple and effective ways to revive your content! A bit of effort goes a long way in the eyes of SEO and potential customers. Let's look at some of the most tell-tale signs of stale content and a few fixes to help revive your website content and THRIVE in 2021.
Cardamom won't help you here, but an updated headshot/team photos can do WONDERS for your website. Believe it or not, often, the most visited page on any website is the "about" page, especially for those who showcase the team behind the biz. The "about" page is your chance to tell the world who you are, what you do, how you do it, and why it matters. Giving web goers a glimpse into who you are, what you have to offer, and the information to back it up (social proof, testimonials, etc.) can be enough to solidify a conversion. Take a little time to refresh this page every 6-12 months to show your personal/professional growth, new team members, or exciting business/product milestones worth bragging about.
Does your Copyright date at the bottom of your website show the current year...or 2016? Believe it or not, that small detail can affect your credibility with web-goers. This is also relevant to any news articles, press releases, events and anything with a date on your website. Old dates are dead giveaways that the site has been a ghost town for a while, making sure you regularly update these items. Even if you have relevant content with older publish dates, most people will assume your content is no longer relevant, so don't be shy about reviving. Otherwise, you may find your target audience ghosting for the next Google search result.
If your last blog post wishes your clients a "Happy Holidays, and all be best in 2021..." then you're due for a new post. A blog is a great way to keep your content fresh, users engaged search engines crawling your website. Try to aim for AT LEAST one blog post a month to show that:
1) You are engaged with your audience
2) You are offering relevant information regarding your products/services that can help your website climb the search engine page results
Concise and straightforward articles are best — so make sure to keep them relevant to your target audience and offer valuable tips or advice. Most research shows you should aim for 1500 - 2500 words per post (think value more than character count), depending on your audience/topic. Incorporating media-rich content into the body of your posts is also essential - so include videos, social media embeds, images with proper alt text etc. Blogs also the perfect place to leverage your keywords and strategically placed hyperlinks to service pages in your website to be considered a source of consistent, credible content in the eyes of search engines. Don't have time to blog? Consider hiring a copywriter to tackle the job for you!
We are more visual creatures than ever before, and pictures/videos on your website are another piece of content that can get stale - FAST. Outdated pictures and visuals can completely derail otherwise strong content, which a little refresh can easily avoid. In fact, antiquated visuals are often the top reason web goers will overlook well-thought-out and relevant content. If you've got the budget, hire a local photographer to capture your latest products/services and let your content shine. A small investment into stock imagery can also help if a photoshoot isn't in the budget. Some incredible resources on the web also offer "free" stock imagery; make sure you read the terms and conditions before use.
To avoid the most severe cases of SCS, refreshing your website's content should be built into your business strategy regularly, including your about page, website dates, blog content and visuals. However, if you think a complete web re-design is just what the doctor ordered, contact us today for a free quote. We're experts in bringing your digital dreams to life.
